EU parliament scraps Turkey visit this week

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union has scrapped a parliamentary visit to Turkey following the Ankara government's stinging criticism of an EU resolution about the handling of Turkish protests.

European parliamentarian Elmar Brok said that Wednesday's visit of the legislative delegation was postponed following last week's rebuke and told Turkey that it "should understand how to deal with criticism."

He said Tuesday he hoped a constructive dialogue would soon be resumed.

Last week, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan lashed out at the European Parliament over a non-binding resolution expressing concern over "the disproportionate and excessive use of force" by Turkish police against the demonstrators.

Turkey first applied for EU membership in 1987 and was granted the status of an EU candidate country in 1999, but any progress since has been slow.